" A physical yet fair player, he was also known for his anticipation, strength, aggression, determination, discipline, intelligence and concentration as a defender, as well as his man-marking skills and ability to organise his defence; he also excelled in one on one situations | He was Barcelona's from August 2004 until his retirement in 2014, and appeared in 593 competitive matches for the club |
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[Minutes of the match held on 13 May 2009, in Valencia] in Spanish | The following year, he was ruled out of the , once again due to physical problems |
He said "After my last two major operations, I find it is taking me a lot of effort to reach the level required here, even more than myself and the surgeons thought necessary.
28He started in three out of five matches at the , and acted as captain when was rested for the last group stage fixture; they finished third, and he was included in the Team of the Tournament with four of his teammates | They won the against , and he was named in the Team of the Tournament alongside his defensive partner, of Valencia |
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[Minutes of the match held on 14 August 2010, in Seville] in Spanish | He played for his country at the , , , , , and the |
After that he successfully made another conversion, to.
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